Shenanigans
by Rivendell101
Summary: College is full of problems. From losing your apartment because of your roommate from hell, to moving in with your two best friends. College is also full of shenanigans. Baking cookies, babysitting, and your friends breaking and entering are only part of it. Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji were not expecting this, but they can't say they don't like it./ Eventual ShikaIno AU
1. Friday Nights

**AN: I'm not sure where this came from, but I wanted to write a fic about Team 10 because they're my babies. I love them. And I wanted this to be an AU, because I love writing AUs, I really do, but I didn't want this to be a high school AU, so I went with college.**

**I hope you guys like it! Please review!**

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**Chapter One: Friday Nights**

Shikamaru Nara has always loved Friday nights. During high school it was because he could finally sleep in the next day, after five days of waking up at six-oh-hell-no in the morning. Now, it's because on Friday nights he can relax because he doesn't have work or school to worry about tomorrow and almost everyone else in the complex goes out to party until noon the next day—sans him and Choji of course—so the entire apartment complex would be nearly silent. He says "nearly" because across the hall lives chain-smoking Asuma Sarutobi, his wife Kurenai, and their new baby, Hinoishi. Next door on the right is Izumo and Kotetsu, two men only a few years older than Shikamaru who like to drunkenly sing bad renditions of old Disney songs every Friday night—his favorite is "Can You Feel the Love Tonight," though he would prefer that they _don't sing at all_. On the left is Genma, who once lit off fireworks on the roof of the apartment building with Asuma and accidentally burned off his own eyebrows. They were drunk, of course, and Kakashi—a friend of Asuma and Genma—had nearly fallen off the roof he was laughing so hard. For adults they can be, well, kind of stupid.

Friday nights are usually safe though, so long as those three stay off the roof—which they will because Kurenai has Asuma whipped, and Genma is terrified of her because she nearly strangled him once while she was pregnant. Or so Asuma said, he wasn't really listening. Izumo and Kotetsu aren't really a problem since they always end up passing out around midnight anyway. Everyone else is gone on Friday nights, and that's okay (he prefers being alone anyway, but since Choji is his roommate and one of his best friends he deals with constantly being around people). He doesn't need nor want the unnecessary shouts of wasted college boys trying to flirt with every vaguely feminine form that walks by them. How pathetic.

It's actually kind of disgusting, the way they act like rabid dogs whenever a girl walks by. More than once he's had to rip someone off of his friend Ino as he walked her home after work or a late night class. She would always smile at him when he dropped her off, tell him that he didn't need to walk her home, and then give him hug before disappearing into her apartment. To be frank, it's troublesome that he has to spend time walking her home when he could be at _his_ home asleep. On the other hand, he doesn't even want to _think_ about what could happen to her if she _did_ walk home alone. Ino, strong as she may be, is only a tiny bit over five-foot-two, her head barely reaches his chin and he can easily see clear over her head, and the idea of a bunch of drunk idiots grabbing her and hurting her makes him sick. She's been his friend for as long as he can remember and he refuses to let anything happen to her. He would never forgive himself is she got hurt because he was being lazy. Shikamaru might act indifferent, but he cares about his friends more than anything else, and he won't let any of them get hurt so long as he's able to prevent it. That goes for Choji and Ino both.

Ino is—in a way—troublesome. She's practically the definition of troublesome, and she knows it too. He tells her nearly every time he sees her. She's tiny and blonde, but she's a spitfire that won't hesitate to beat some sense into anyone that steps out of line (usually verbally, but he knows that she has quite the right-hook). She's eccentric and a free spirit, but she's levelheaded and grounded at the same time, determined in everything she does, steadfast. She's artsy, she dances and paints, and one time she stole his acoustic guitar for a month without him realizing it, not that he ever really used it. People think she's just a dumb blonde, but she proved them wrong in high school when she graduated as Salutatorian of their graduating class. She was student council president and captain of the girls volleyball team, but instead of partying and hanging out with the popular crowed she chose to stick with him and Choji because they're her best friends, and none of them would change that for anything. She's flirty, but contrary to everyone thinking that she sleeps around, Ino has only had a handful of boyfriends and she either broke up with them when they got too handsy with her, or they left her when she wouldn't put out. She has a wicked sense of humor, but she's one of the most caring people he has ever met. She's an enigma and she's oh-so-contradictory to everything she should be, but he wouldn't have her any other way, because otherwise she wouldn't be _Ino._

Ino is troublesome and a sass-master, but that's what makes her _Ino_. He can complain about how she's annoying or that she nags him, but he can't say he wants her to stop. He doesn't really mean it, after all. Ino is troublesome—the most troublesome girl he's ever met, but she's one of his best friends. He doesn't know how she managed to weasel her way into his life, but she did and apparently she isn't going anywhere. She's become an essential part of his life and it would be troublesome if she stopped coming around.

It's always been the three of them. Him, Ino, and Choji, that is. Choji has been there for his entire live, Ino for all but a day. And then some, probably. He's pretty sure that their mothers hung out while they were pregnant, but he isn't sure. It's not like he really wants to ask anyway. If he does, his mom will just go on and on, and eventually she'll be talking about the _filtration process of the kidney_. He does not need that speech for the _sixth_ time. He can honestly say that he knows more about the kidney than he ever cared to know. Thanks Mom.

Don't get him wrong, he loves his mother, she's just… troublesome, for lack of a better word. And loud and a nag, and sometimes he wonders how she ever ended up with his father, because he's exactly like his father and he does _not_ want to marry a woman like his mother.

Shikamaru shudders slightly. His mother is a truly terrifying woman.

"Shikamaru, are you even listening to me?" No, he wasn't, but Choji probably already knows that. The dark-haired nineteen-year-old in question rolls over on the couch to look at his brunette friend. Who—he might add—is giving him a mildly sour look. Choji is a generally amiable person. He has a huge heart and loves his friends dearly. He wouldn't hurt a fly. Sort of. Shikamaru can count on one hand the number of fights Choji got in during their high school years—entire life actually. Oddly enough, it was usually Ino that picked fights with people twice her size, though more often than not it was to defend either him or Choji from some sort of badmouthing.

He has to hand it to her though, Ino can really do some damage when she wants to. He vaguely recalls her breaking a few noses and giving a few black eyes. There was also the incident where she accidentally dislocated that guys shoulder (he still doesn't know how she managed to do that).

Even _he _started more fights than Choji, and Shikamaru isn't exactly known for being a confrontational person, he isn't, at all. He would much rather sit back and watch than jump in to get a black eye or a bloody lip. Because what's the point of that? People can say whatever they want about him, most of it's true anyway, but he wouldn't just sit there as someone verbally—and in some cases _physically_ attack his friends. Most of the time it was because someone was saying something vulgar about Ino—he is not just going to sit there while guys talk about what they'd like to do to his best friend, it's disgusting and Ino doesn't deserve to be treated as an object—other times it was because someone was being mean to Choji and Choji wouldn't do anything about it.

He can't stand it when people go after his friends.

"Shikamaru?"

"Yeah? Sorry, Choji," he grumbles, the corners of his lips quirking up in a small, apologetic grin. "What were you saying?" He feels slightly bad that he wasn't listening, but it wasn't on purpose. He just has an active brain, he is a genius after all. He's a lazy slacker, but he's a genius. Sometimes it's just hard not to drift off with his thoughts.

Choji just rolls his eyes, but grins nonetheless. He's always been one to let things roll off his back. In fact, Shikamaru can't really remember a time when Choji took an insult to heart. Unless you insult his weight. Choji can be a real monster when someone does that.

"I was asking what you want to watch tonight." Right. Movie night. Every Friday is movie night, it's always been that way.

Shikamaru sighs and throws an arm over his eyes. "I don't know," he says eventually. "What did we watch last time?" he asks the brunette, head lolling to the side lazily.

"Umm," he flicks through their unorganized box of DVDs, "I think we watched the _Saw_ movies." Of course. He should have remembered that.

"You're right," Shikamaru replies, cracking an eye open to look at Choji. A smirk crawls across his face. "For two days you complained about losing your appetite." Choji shoots him a glare and tosses a pillow at him, but Shikamaru just laughs as the soft projectile smacks him in the face. He can act carefree around his friends, he doesn't need to act like he doesn't care around them.

"Those movies were disgusting," Choji defends, pointing at Shikamaru as the pillow slides to the floor. "Just because you're completely indifferent to blood and guts, doesn't mean I have to be." Choji laughs and shakes his head. "God you're a rock."

Shikamaru just rolls his eyes. "Dad was a cop, remember? I've seen my fair share of crime scene photos." He smirks. "Accidentally of course." Choji snickers and mockingly says "accidentally" under his breath. Shikamaru tosses the fallen pillow back at his friend. "What do you want to watch?" he asks.

"Nothing horror," Choji says firmly.

"Agreed," Shikamaru says seriously, nodding. "We wouldn't want you to lose your appetite again." There's a wicked gleam in his eyes. "Or your lunch," he finishes, laughing and throwing his hands up in front of his face as Choji smacks him with the pillow again.

Choji shakes his head. "You're terrible, you know that?" He snorts and pulls a few DVDs out of the box. "How about _X-Men_?"

"Why not." Shikamaru shrugs and nestles further into the couch. Choji is just about to start the movie when someone knocks on the door. The two share a look. It's nearly nine at night, so someone being at the door is a bit strange. "Should we answer it? It could might just be Genma again." Choji doesn't answer, he just walks over to the door, hesitating for a moment before wrenching it open as quickly as possible.

"Choji!" A pair of skinny arms wrap around said man's stomach, and Choji immediately brightens as he lifts the person off their feet, returning the embrace. Shikamaru's lips twitch into a small smile and he stands as well. He knows exactly who's at the door, and it certainly isn't Genma.

The tall man laughs loudly and sets the new arrival back on their feet. "Hey, Ino," he says, releasing her. Ino steps out from behind Choji, and Shikamaru gets a clear look at her. Her silvery-blonde hair is pulled into a messy bun, strands falling over her eyes and around her face, and there are dark purple bags under her eyes. It worries him a little bit, but he doesn't have time to say anything as the small girl practically tackles him with a hug.

"Hi, Ino," Shikamaru manages to say through the smothering hold. He doesn't really mind though, Ino has always been affectionate with people and he got used to it a long time ago. He chuckles under his breath and wraps his arms around her in return, giving her a quick squeeze. "Did you walk here by yourself?" he asks accusingly. She should know by now that neither him nor Choji like it when she walks around alone at night, but at least she's okay.

"Yup." She springs away from him and grins. "I came to see how you guys are doing, after this I have to go look for a new apartment." Shikamaru frowns slightly. He doesn't know anything about her needing a new apartment, so that's kind of odd. Not to mention the fact that Ino is talking ridiculously fast, Shikamaru can barely keep up with what she's saying. "By the way, you forgot to do your laundry again, didn't you?"

He blinks. How does she always know that? It's weird. Whenever they forget to do something, Ino is right there to remind them to do it. It's like she's psychic or something. Shikamaru and Choji share a look over their favorite blonde's head. "Why do you need a new apartment?" Choji asks before she can continue talking about their dirty laundry.

"Oh!" She brightens as if she's suddenly remembered something. "I was kicked out—well, no. My roommate is moving out and I don't have the money to pay the rent by myself, so the landlord is going to rent it to someone else and he told me to find somewhere else to stay—so, yes, I was kicked out. I have until Tuesday to move my stuff out." Shikamaru and Choji can barely follow, but Ino doesn't even stop to take a breath. Shikamaru almost wishes that Choji hadn't opened the door. Almost. "Sakura and Hinata said I could stay with them, but Forehead and Sasuke just got back together and I don't want to be there for that." She pulls a face. "Poor Hinata," she murmurs under her breath. "And Kiba said that I could stay with him and Shino, but Shino has an ant farm and Kiba is a pervert, so I'm not doing that!"

Okay, usually Ino doesn't talk _this_ much. "Ino—"

"Sai said I could stay with him since we have one of the same art classes, but he's creepy and that just seems like a bad idea waiting to happen, so I said no. I'm not going to do that. I don't care if he is Naruto's friend, he's skeazy."

How is she even breathing? He takes another good look at her, and he doesn't like what he sees. She looks like she's about to start crying, and Ino _never_ cries. The last time she cried was when—no, he doesn't want to think about that. Plus she looks like she hasn't slept for a while, which concerns him more than a little. She looks like a mess, one hand fisted in her hair, eyes darting around wildly. "Hey—"

"And I'm sorry for just showing up like this, I'm just really stressed out right now, because we've had a bunch of rush orders at the shop and my deadline was moved forward a week, but I haven't even started my project yet because I've been busy, and then today I was asked to help out with a dance class—and I know that you're supposed to practically grope your partner when doing the Rumba, but he should not have grabbed me there and—"

"Ino," Shikamaru repeats, sternly this time, pulling her out of her rant. He doesn't raise his voice at all, because that's not something he does.

She whirls on him. "What?" she snaps. Behind her, Choji looks terrified. Ino can be reprimanding and sharp with people when she needs to be, but she has never outright snapped at either of them. Something is definitely not right.

Shikamaru sighs and lowers his voice. "When was the last time you slept?"

"Three days ago," she answers automatically. He winces. Sleeping in ninety percent of his schedule (which has, admittedly, gotten him fired on several occasions) and she hasn't slept for three days? Is she insane? He reminds himself that, yes, Ino is insane, she's always been the insane one. "But who needs sleep?" she asks rhetorically. Ino points to herself suddenly. "Not me!" He begs to differ, she's acting spastic right now and it's only been three days. He doesn't want to know what would happen if she skipped another night. Doesn't she know that not sleeping is bad for her health? And if she hasn't slept in three days why is she acting so... energetic? He sighs heavily when he realizes the answer.

"Okay," he says slowly, dryly, "and how many cups of coffee have you had today?"

"Two." He stares at her hard, not believing her for a second. Ino has always had a coffee problem, she's practically addicted to the drink. She denies this, of course, but he knows the truth. Ino squirms in discomfort, not meeting his eyes, and his eyes narrow as a bored expression settles on his face. It'll only be a matter of time. Ino can't lie after drinking coffee, well, she can, but she's really bad at it. As soon as she looks at the person she's lied to she cracks and tells the truth. They've played this game before and he always wins. Always. She look up at him briefly and cracks. Bingo. "Okay, like six." Six? How can you drink six cups of coffee in one go? Ino freezes and her eyes widen. "Which reminds me, I really need to use the bathroom." Before Shikamaru or Choji can say anything, she's already gone, disappearing into the bathroom.

Shikamaru opens his mouth to say something, but nothing comes out. Finally, he just looks over at Choji, confusion clearly plastered on his face. The other man just snickers. "Well, that was certainly interesting," Choji says, still laughing. Shikamaru keeps staring. "Oh, don't look at me like that. I don't understand women any better than you do. Least of all Ino."

"I don't think Ino understands Ino," Shikamaru grumbles, shaking his head. Girls are... weird. Nearly all of the women in his life are brash and loud and kind of annoying. Not to mention _violent_. Specifically his mother, Ino, and Sakura. Unfortunately for him, two of those women play an important role in his life, and he really doesn't need another, which is probably why he's perpetually single.

Choji smiles fondly, chuckling under his breath. "Yeah, but we wouldn't have her any other way, would we?" Shikamaru makes a low, throaty noncommittal sound which could be taken as agreement, feigning disinterest. Choji glances down the hallway. "Do you think she'll still be wired up when she gets back out here?" he asks as they move back to the couch.

"Nah," Shikamaru says as he flops onto the couch, one arm slung over his eyes to block out the light, though he does keep one eye on his friend. Choji pops the movie into the DVD player and then sits down on the other end, waiting to play the movie until Ino gets back. "You know how Ino is. Once she gets the caffeine out of her system she'll be fine." His frown deepens and his eyebrows knit together. "Probably." He's never quite sure when it comes to Ino. He's always ten steps ahead of everyone, except for Ino. He's known her for his entire life, yet somehow she still manages to surprise him. It's troublesome.

Choji snickers and it isn't long before Ino reappears in the living room. This time she looks less prone to jump on him, and her smile is just as tired as her eyes, but at least she's smiling. He glances down at the dark blue shirt that's much too large for her small frame. It ends a ways above her knees, but it's still long enough to cover the shorts that he assumes she's wearing.

"Is that my shirt?" he asks curiously, mildly amused. Something like satisfaction bubbles inside him at the sight of her wearing his clothes, but he pushes it away before it can fester. He frowns slightly. That was... odd

Ino glances down at herself tiredly. "Yeah," she replies. "I must have thrown it on this morning without noticing," she explains, tugging at the bottom of her—actually his—shirt lightly. "Sorry."

He waves her off, shrugging. It's not really a big deal. The second she steps close enough he reaches out and pulls her down onto the open space between him and Choji. She huffs indignantly at his man-handling, but doesn't say anything in protest, although she does swat at his arm halfheartedly, and retaliates by tossing her legs across his lap and he rests his arm across the back of the couch behind her.

Out of the corner of his eye he catches Choji's smirk. He ignores it, obviously. Well, he tells himself that he's ignoring it. It's kind of hard to ignore the _oh-you-two_ look. Choji has always had the idea that he and Ino will get together at some point, but so far it hasn't happened, and it probably never will because Ino is the most troublesome woman he has ever met and Shikamaru isn't looking for someone troublesome. He isn't looking for _anyone,_ or so he tells himself. Fate has a bad habit of fucking with him though so who knows what will happen.

"So," Choji starts. "What's this about you being kicked out of your apartment?" The question is innocent enough, but Ino groans and sinks further into the couch, one hand pressed to her temple.

"You remember my roommate Tayuya, right?"

"No," Choji says, shrugging.

"The flute player?" Shikamaru says at the same time. He recalls meeting her once when he walked Ino home. She tried to kill him.

"Isn't she blonde?"

Ino looks at him oddly. "Choji, you just said that you don't remember her. Why would you try and guess her hair color?"

"Was I right?" he fires back.

"Maybe," Ino says after half a beat, pursing her lips and narrowing her eyes. "She's currently a red-head, but it's not natural." Ino chuckles to herself for a moment, and Choji looks down at her nervously. It's never a good thing when Ino laughs to herself. Usually it ends with someone being covered in paint. He's been on the receiving end of that before, and it wasn't fun. "Anyway, she's moving out to go live with one of her four boyfriends." Choji blanches at the news. "Two of them are twins," she adds quickly, making Choji's disgusted look worsen. Shikamaru just shakes his head. "Well, she forgot to tell me about it, and she refuses to pay this months rent because she isn't actually living there anymore. And my landlord is an asshole, so now I'm going to have to find a new place to live." Ino's sighs and shifts in place. "Speaking of which, I should probably get going."

She starts to pull her legs off of Shikamaru, but his fingers close around her ankle before she can get very far. "Don't even think about it," he says, voice completely monotonous. His dark eyes sluggishly shift to meet her much lighter, blue ones, and he blinks at her lazily.

"Shikamaru," she says gently, one hand going to his shoulder. "I'm nineteen, not nine. I think I can walk home by myself." Her voice is calm and reassuring, but Shikamaru's grip only tightens as she one again tries to remove her legs from his lap.

"It's Friday night," he deadpans. "You're not walking home." They glare at each other for a moment, eyes locked in a fierce standoff. Well, Ino's gaze is fierce, Shikamaru's is still as bored as before. Ino opens her mouth to say something and—

"Why don't you just stay here?"

The two turn towards Choji. Shikamaru looking over her head and Ino leaning back on her elbows to look at him upside down.

"You mean for tonight?" Ino asks him, one eyebrow quirking up in confusion.

"Well, that too," Choji says, "but I meant stay here as in 'why don't you move in?'" He shrugs. "You're always over here anyway, and we have a spare room. Plus, I don't think any of us would turn down a third person helping with the rent." Ino gives a half-shrug of agreement, but shakes her head.

"I don't know, Choji," she says skeptically. "I don't want to intrude—"

Shikamaru cuts her off. "You already are intruding." He says it seriously enough, but when Ino shoots him an offended look, he half-smirks at her, showing that he's only joking. "No, but seriously, stay here."

She scoffs. "You just don't want me to walk home," she argues, rolling her eyes at her dark-haired best friend.

"That too," Shikamaru confesses under his breath. "But, Ino, we like having you around," he says quietly, the hand on her ankle going slack. He doesn't look at her, mildly embarrassed. "We like spending time with you." He says it so seriously and so sincerely that Ino doesn't know what to say and Shikamaru, seemingly realizing what he just said, coughs awkwardly. "Besides, we're about to watch _X-Men_, and we all know how much you love Hugh Jackman," he covers quickly, rubbing the back of his neck, something he does a lot when nervous.

Ino's eyes stay locked with Shikamaru's for a heartbeat too long and Choji smiles knowingly. "Okay," she says quietly. "I guess you guys have a new roommate."

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**AN: I finished this at like 1 this morning, so the ending might be bad. I hope you guys enjoyed chapter one! If anyone seems OOC please let me know. I'm not too into Naruto, because the only characters I really like are the members of Team 10, so I might have the characterization off a little bit. Sorry!**

**Review guys! And feel free to send me situations that I can use for this story. Something serious, something ridiculous, it doesn't matter! I just need shenanigans. **

**-Riven**


	2. Who are You Sleeping With?

**AN: And here's chapter 2! Sorry it took awhile to finish, I had some other projects I was working on :D And now Naruto is over! What do you guys think of **_**The Last**_** designs? Enjoy!**

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**Chapter Two: Who Are You Sleeping With?**

It's kind of strange how easily Ino integrated herself into their lives, his and Choji's that is. Well, she was already integrated, she has been for close to twenty years, but now she lives with them too, and that change was so ridiculously seamless, it was _natural_, at least it was to him. She's only been living with them for a week, but it's like she's always been there. Maybe it's because she usually is there. Before Ino moved in she still spent sixty percent of her day with Shikamaru and Choji (the other forty percent was because of school or work and the time she actually spent around her roommate from hell). They both know that it was because Ino hates to be alone, she always has, but she also couldn't stand the aforementioned roommate from hell, so she usually ended up at their apartment at some point (Shikamaru only met Tayuya once, when he went to drop Ino off one night. The flute player had been in a very heated lip lock with one of her several boyfriends and had tried to bludgeon him with a toaster until Ino stopped her, after nearly being hit with said toaster herself. He doesn't even want to know why her first instinct was to save his sorry ass from her toaster-wielding maniac of a roommate). He usually saw her everyday, unless of course she had a deadline for one of her artsy projects that Shikamaru doesn't quite understand, art just isn't his thing. When Ino has a deadline it's normal for her to disappear for a week and not contact anyone (she says, jokingly of course, that it's part of her creative process as a tortured artist, but he just thinks that she's crazy) and, though he will never admit it out loud, he gets a little worried when she does this. She's always there, she's a very important part of his schedule and when she doesn't show up it completely messes it up, and fixing said ruined schedule is troublesome (he'd never say that this is one of the only times where _he_ ends up seeking _her_ out).

Anyway, that doesn't matter now. Even if Ino does disappear for a few days to finish a project, she's still in the room right next to his. He'll be able to verify that, "_yes, Sakura, she is still alive_," and, "_no, Sakura, she didn't randomly die in the five minutes since you've last asked_," and even a little, "_why are you even asking us, Sakura? We're as clueless as you are when it comes to Ino, probably more so_." Admittedly, it is going to be nice to check in on her quickly without having to dodge paintbrushes, and one time an entire can of neon green paint, because they disturbed her while she was working, and, _"you threw off my groove!"_ Whatever that means.

How she even managed to lift that can of paint and throw it at him at fifty-miles-an-hour is a mystery. Then again, the girl is freakishly strong when she's mad. She can tackle like a rugby player (he knows this from experience because he's been tackled by both Ino and a rugby player, and he could barely tell the difference) and one time she, at only five-foot-two, shoved the six-foot-three quarterback of their high school football team into a wall because he was being mean to Hinata. Shikamaru doesn't know how she does it, nor does he _want_ to question it. Granted, most times she's used her monster strength on people they've deserved it, but still, it's not normal.

Not that any of them are normal. Between his family and his friends, he doesn't know anyone that's normal. It's a miracle that nothing bad happened while they were helping Ino move in, especially considering that Kiba and Naruto decided to help. That _could_ have ended in disaster, someone _could_ have died. It was a miracle that everyone walked away with their limbs in tact.

_"Hey, Kiba," Ino shouts over the stack of boxes in her arms, which are blocking her view, causing her to nearly run into the wall in front of her, "can you grab my easel?" She stumbles and Shikamaru sighs and grabs the topmost boxes out of her arms so that he can help her, being rewarded with a sunny smile and bright blue eyes. He just rolls his eyes, free hand raising to flick her forehead gently. Ino sends him a mock angry look, but murmurs a "thank you" and bumps him with her hip as she passes him._

_Kiba's head pops out of Ino's half-empty old room, confusion written across his face. "What the hell is an easel?" he barks, head tilting curiously to the right. On the floor, Kiba's large, white dog, Akamaru, mirrors the action. Shikamaru snorts in mild amusement at this, either Akamaru was incredibly human in what he does, or Kiba acts like a dog. Kiba growls suddenly. "Hey! What's an easel? Come back here, Blondie! You and your stupid artsy stuff…"he grumbles, wrinkling his noise. "It stinks."_

_The latter option seems entirely more probable._

_Choji ambles over to him, carrying a box of what looks suspiciously like paint buckets. Shikamaru decides not to question it. Ino does what she wants, and if that includes hording buckets of paint, so be it. He's not going to bother to ask._

_ The taller brunette leans down to whisper in his ear. "Kiba's going to get it for that," Choji tells him. "Ino's not going to be happy about that comment." From on the floor Naruto laughs. _

_ Shikamaru briefly wonders why the blond is lying splayed across the ground, but feels that it's not worth it to ask, lest Naruto open his mouth and start talking about something. He would never shut up if that happened, and Shikamaru doesn't need the headache right now._

_ "Twenty bucks says she kills him and hides him in the wall."_

_Choji scoffs at the suggestion, glaring at the blond. "Shut up, Naruto. Ino wouldn't do that," he defends their female friend. Naruto positively wilts at that, crossing his arms over his chest and pouting like a giant three-year-old. Suddenly, Choji shoots him a grin. "When she kills him, she'll make it seem like a dumb accident. With Kiba, she could totally get away with it."_

_It takes all of two seconds for Naruto to laugh._ _He chokes on his spit, gasping for air and looking like some sort of animal, and Choji follows suit moments later. Akamaru, who lumbered into the main room at some point, just wags his tail like a happy dog, not sure why everyone is so excited, but happy nonetheless. Shikamaru just sighs and shakes his head at the other boys. Why can't he have normal friends? Is that really too much to ask for?_

_ A loud bang erupts from the room Kiba's in, but all of them ignore it. Naruto and Choji are too busy acting like idiots to notice and Akamaru is a dog, so he can't really do much. Kiba probably just tripped over something, and Shikamaru doesn't care enough to go check on him. He'll be fine. Probably._

_"Hey." Naruto wheezes as Shikamaru nudges him with his foot, causing Choji to laugh even harder and making Shikamaru sigh. Idiots. "Would you two knock it off? I'd like to get out of here as soon as possible, and you two acting like fools isn't really helping," Shikamaru says sourly. They should have been back at the apartment over an hour ago, but Naruto decided that lying on the ground is a good idea, Kiba doesn't know what anything is, nor where to put it, and Akamaru is always in the way. The three extra people helping should have made everything go faster, not take longer. He sighs for what feels like the hundredth time today. He doesn't even know why Kiba and Naruto decided to "help." It's not even really helping, it's like they decided to come over and make things worse. How did they even find out that Ino was moving? Probably Sakura. Damn her._

_Naruto grins up at him. "Wow, Shikamaru, I thinks that's the most I've ever heard you say in one sentence," he jokes. Shikamaru can feel his eye twitch in annoyance, but refrains from replying to__—or killing—the blond prankster. That would be more trouble than it was worth._

_"Naruto, leave Shikamaru alone," a new voice says, Ino twirling back into the apartment from who knows where she went off to. Shikamaru could have kissed her for coming back, at least the guys will listen to her. Wait, what? Where did that thought come from?_

_"Oh, come on, Ino," Naruto whines from below. "We were just messing around. It's not like we were being mean to him." Ino rolls her eyes and scoops a box of paintbrushes off the ground, Naruto watching her wearily as she walks over to him. She then proceeds to drop said box on the spiky blond's stomach, making him hiss like some deranged cat._

_"Just go put a box in the car," she says, sighing. Naruto grumbles something under his breath, but complies, standing up and walking out the door in a sulky manor, box pressed protectively against his chest. Ino just shakes her head and spins on her heel. "Kiba, what is it you wanted?"_

_The brunette in question again pops out of the room, this time with an assortment of paint and glitter covering his face and hair. Shikamaru doesn't even want to know how that happened._

_"I need to know what an easel is!" he shouts, panicked. Akamaru leaps to his feet, barking loudly, and Kiba scrambles to quiet the dog, looking rather frazzled at the moment. He grins at Ino sheepishly. "Also, I may or may not have knocked over a bucket of glitter. It was sitting on top of a dresser, which is sort of odd actually. Why did you have glitter in your room?" Ino seemingly ignores the latter half of what Kiba said, zeroing in on his initial remark._

_ She frowns, hands going to her hips. Choji's eyes widen and he quickly excuses himself before hurricane Ino appears, grabbing a box and dragging a just returned Naruto out of the apartment, leaving Shikamaru, who's still standing there with the box he took from Ino, to deal with the new problem, which just so happens to be Ino._

_ "You don't know what an easel is?" Ino hisses, glaring. "Kiba, we've been friends since middle school and you don't know what an easel is?" She takes a threatening step towards him, fuse short from lack of sleep and moving frustration, and Kiba immediately shrinks back in terror. Akamaru whines in the corner, slinking between two boxes on the ground. The brunette was raised by his mother and older sister, he knows not to make women angry._

_ "No?" he asks more than says._

_ "'No' you don't know what it is, or 'no' you do know what it is?"_

_ "Yes," Kiba says, backing up slowly. Shikamaru isn't sure if he's purposely trying to sound confusing, or if it's just coming out that way. All he knows is that Kiba is digging himself a rather nice sized hole in the ground, and Ino looks about ready to bury him alive._

_Ino hisses and takes another angry step forward, but Shikamaru stops her with a hand on her shoulder. "Calm down, Ino," he says quietly. She looks up at him, blinking slowly, and seems to calm down some. Shikamaru continue, "Kiba's just an idiot__—"_

_ "Hey!"_

_ "—you know how he is."_

_ Ino sighs, but nods and runs her hand over her face, grumbling something under her breath. She picks up another box and spins around on her heel, ready to leave. She stops suddenly, hands squeezing the box in a crushing grip. "Wait, did you say you spilt glitter all over the floor?"_

_Kiba pales. "I still don't know what an easel is. Can we go back to that?"_

Shikamaru nearly laughs out loud at the thought. Kiba was lucky that Choji and Naruto came back right at that moment and helped him out. Shikamaru probably would have just watched as Ino killed him for making a mess—which Kiba then had to clean up. Jeez, there was so much glitter on the floor. Why did Ino even have that much glitter? He has never seen her use glitter before. Plus glitter is gross, it's sparkly and sticks to everything and stays forever, no matter how many times you take a shower. Disgusting.

Shikamaru rolls onto his back on the couch, eyes zeroing in on Ino, who's on the floor propped up against the couch, knees pulled up to her chest, sketchbook in her lap. He had offered to let her sit on the couch, but she had thrown a pencil at him and shrieked something about "not needing his chivalry!" Whatever that meant. After that Choji had been too scared to let her sit in the chair he was currently sitting in.

She looks so focused that he almost doesn't want to say anything, but he's bored and she's the only one around at the moment. Choji had disappeared into his room about an hour ago to do who knows what, and Shikamaru doesn't want to get up to go find him.

"So," he says. Ino looks at him briefly, then turns back to her work. "What are you working on?"

"New design," she replies quickly, not looking up. Shikamaru nods in understanding. To make extra money, Ino sells personally designed T-shirts. Once she made shirts for him and Choji one Christmas. Choji's was a plain shirt with butterfly wings on the back, which was neat, it fit Choji perfectly and he loved it. Shikamaru's was a cute, burtonesque deer, a play on his name that Ino made for laughs. And boy did everyone laugh. The guys nearly died laughing when they saw it and it was all sort of embarrassing.

He does wear it though, if only to humor her. (That's a complete lie, it's secretly his favorite shirt. Though he would ever admit that to anyone.)

Suddenly Ino curses and tears out the drawing she had been working on, balling it up and tossing it across the room, where it lands next to several other crumbled sketches. The pencil hits the ground a second later and there's a rustle o paper before Ino stands, then plops onto the couch on top of him.

He rolls his eyes, but doesn't protest to the sudden weight. "Design trouble?" he asks, closing his eyes.

Ino scoffs and he pictures her crossing her arms and scowling at the abandoned sketchbook. "You could say that," she says bitterly. Shikamaru forces down a grin, that would only make her angrier, and a fuming blonde is _not_ on his list of things to worry about today. He doesn't _have_ anything to worry about (no school today, no work, and no weird friends to come over and bother him because they _have_ work), and he'd like to keep things that way.

Above him, Ino shifts slightly, fingertips grazing his arm and nearly making him jump. He was _not_ expecting that. He stills, holding his breath and waiting. "So," Ino says. "What are you—"

"LEE!"

"GAI-SENSEI!"

This time Shikamaru does jump, accidentally knocking Ino onto the floor as he does. Cursing under his breath, he rolls over the side of the couch, landing on his feet. Ino is on her back staring at the ceiling, confusion etched across her face. "What in the world?" she murmurs.

"LEE!"

"GAI-SENSEI!"

"Shut up!" Izumo screams from the right. A loud banging noise sounds from the apartment on the left, followed by muffled cursing.

"Knock it off, Gai!" Genma shouts. "Thump." Shikamaru is almost positive that Genma just threw something at the wall. It does the trick though, everyone stops screaming, thankfully.

He looks down at Ino, who blinks up at him. "Is everyone is this building crazy?" she asks seriously.

Shikamaru ponders the question for a moment. Is everyone in the building crazy? "Yes," he answers simply. "Everyone here is crazy."

"Great," she says, nodding her head. "Great." She sits up slowly, crossing her legs beneath her. "Thanks for throwing me on the floor, by the way. I really appreciate that." He can practically feel the sarcasm in her words.

He snorts, crossing his arms. "If you hadn't have been on top of me—"

"LEE!"

"Shut up, Gai!"

Shikamaru, not having expected that, trips over his own feet and tumbles to the ground.

Right on top of Ino.

He hisses as their heads knock together, and Ino curses under her breath, nearly hitting him with her elbow. Shikamaru attempts to stand at the same time Ino tries to squirm out from under him, but their limbs are so tangled together that she ends up tripping him and he somehow smacks himself with her arm, which makes him lose his grip on the ground and fall on her again, nose bumping against hers, and the breath slamming out of her lungs.

That's when Choji walks in.

"Hey, did you guys hear—" he stops suddenly, and Shikamaru doesn't even want to see the look on his face. "Umm… I'll come back later."

Shikamaru sighs and drops his head to rest on the floor by Ino's shoulder. It's not like things can get any worse. "You know what?" she says, patting his shoulder lightly. "Maybe I should have just stayed in bed today."

He grumbles an affirmative and pushes himself up just as Choji returns to the room.

"So what just happened?" he asks them, looking at them oddly. Shikamaru just sighs, reaching down to pull Ino up as well. The blonde glances at the clock on the wall, curses under her breath, and then darts out of the room, leaving him to deal with their confused friend.

"We fell," he says simply, falling back onto the couch.

"I'm sure," Choji says, smirking. Shikamaru glares, but doesn't say anything. "That's not what it looked like to me."

Ino bursts back into the room before Shikamaru can say anything else, nothing more than a whirl of hair as she darts around the living room, him and Choji watching her flit back and forth. "What are you doing?" Choji finally asks, seeing her nearly trip over the cat.

Ino doesn't spare him a glance. "Getting ready for work." Shikamaru nods slowly, still watching her. Currently she's wrestling with a jacket that just won't seem to go on while also trying to put on her shoes. It's actually a comical sight, given that she's hopping around on one foot and trying to squirm into the jacket using only one hand. Choji snorts, laughing, and Shikamaru nudges him with his elbow. Best not let her hear that. Sighing, he stands and crosses the short distance between them, tugging the jacket down over her head. She grins up at him for a split second before frowning. "Try not to burn the house down, please. I happen to like it here."

Shikamaru raises an eyebrow to that, but doesn't say anything as she pulls on a shoe, using his shoulder to steady herself. He tries his hardest to ignore how warm her palm feels through his shirt, or the way her fingers are curling against his collarbone, and thankfully Choji decides to say something, distracting him.

"Why would we burn the house down?" he asks.

Ino finishes putting her shoes on and steps away from him, though not by much. "It's going to be a crazy night at The Painted Lady, so I probably won't be home in time to eat, which means you two will have to fend for yourselves." She smiles up at him in thanks. "So don't burn the house down."

"You're one to talk," Shikamaru grumbles. Ino gasps, offended, and smacks his shoulder none too gently.

"Excuse you," she snaps. "I'm a great cook. If it weren't for me you and Choji would be living off of takeout and instant noodles." She places both hands on her hips, challenging him.

For some reason he always finds himself taking the bait when it comes to her.

"Choji is a chef," he reminds her, crossing his arms over his chest, returning the challenge. "I think we'll be fine."

She scoffs. "Choji is more likely to eat the food after making it, which is why he was almost fired the other day. Shikamaru glances sideways at Choji, who is trying to slink down the hallway. Rolling his eyes, Shikamaru lets him leave. He'll deal with that later.

"How late do you think you'll be gone?" he asks, eyes locking with hers.

"I don't know," she says, unlocking the apartment door, "but Naruto said he would drop me off when we're done, so you don't need to worry." He places a hand in front of her before she can slip out the door, blocking her in. Ino blinks up at him owlishly and he opens his mouth to say something, he just doesn't know what. Smiling, Ino pushes herself up on her toes, lips pressing against his cheek in a chaste kiss. Drawing back, she smiles again. "Don't worry," she whispers, ducking under his arm and out of the apartment.

Shikamaru frowns. "I always worry."

* * *

It's almost six hours later when Shikamaru gets a text from Ino saying that she's on her way home. It's still a concern of his that _Naruto_ is driving (one time they got into a car accident and he ended up spending the night in the hospital. It wasn't Naruto's fault, really, they were the one's hit, but still. He doesn't want something like that happening to Ino), but things will probably be fine.

"What's with that look?"

"Hmm?" Shikamaru shoots Choji a curious look, frowning. "What look?" he asks, leaning his head back and peering at the other male from the corner of his eye.

Choji rolls his eyes, crossing his arms and smirking. "That look," he says. "The I'm-so-relieved-probably-has-to-do-with-Ino look. So what happened?" Choji asks, leaning back and staring at him.

Shikamaru glares at Choji. "I don't have a look," he grumbles. Choji quirks an eyebrow. "She's on her way home." Choji's smirk grows. "Naruto is driving her."

"Oh," he says. Well I hope she's okay." Shikamaru merely hums in agreement.

Suddenly the door slams open, banging against the wall with an awful sound. Choji leaps to his feet Shikamaru is half way to doing the same thing, when Asuma bursts through the door unannounced. Shikamaru frowns, staring at the brunet. He could have sworn he locked that door. Not that Asuma should be breaking in anyway, but he was so sure the door had been locked before.

"You two," Asuma screams, stepping towards them. Choji lets out a strange squeaking noise and steps back as Asuma rounds on them, glancing back and forth between them. "Which one of you is she sleeping with?"

Silence. That's all Asuma gets in return. Shikamaru has no idea what to say to that and Choji looks like a goldfish out of water. How are they supposed to respond to that? Moreover, why does their kooky neighbor even want to know that? That's not an appropriate question _at all_.

He exchanges a look with Choji before looking at Asuma again. "Why do you just assume that she's having sex with one of us?" On second thought, he doesn't want an answer.

Asuma barks out a laugh. "She's a hot blonde. She has to be sleeping with one of you." The older man crosses his arms and smirks at them. "So which of you is it?"

Shikamaru frowns; Ino isn't like that at all, but Asuma doesn't know her, so he's not actually trying to insult her. And—

"Shikamaru," Choji answers Asuma quickly. Wait what?

"Huh?" he sputters, whirling on Choji and nearly giving himself whiplash. "We're not—we aren't—we're not even dating!" He says almost hysterically. He's probably only adding fuel to their fire by panicking so much, but he can't help it. They're insinuating that he's sleeping with Ino—which is entirely untrue—and for some reason he just can't be calm about this, which is weird because the last time someone thought he was dating some girl he was able to brush it off like it was nothing. Damn Ino and her ability to make him act out of character even when she's not around.

"Earlier I walked in on them lying on the floor with Shikamaru on top of her!" Choji shouts at Asuma.

Shikamaru blanches. "Choji!"

"And before she left for work she kissed him!"

"She didn't—well she did—but not like that!" he stutters, tongue-tied. This is not a conversation he wants to be having right now. Damn Asuma for breaking in. Damn Choji for stabbing him in the back. And damn Ino for getting into this mess, sort of. Not really, but still.

"She kissed you?"

None of them hear the door open.

"Not like that," he denies, shaking his head, attempting to keep his voice monotonous.

"Shikamaru, you liar." Choji nudges him none too gently, and Shikamaru shoots him a sour look in return.

"What are you guys talking about? And who the hell are you?" All three males turn to see Ino standing in the open doorway, Asuma never having closed the door. Her arms are folded around herself almost protectively and she keeps shooting Asuma nervous looks. Shikamaru can only guess that she's a bit put off that there's not only a stranger in her home, but also a stranger yelling at her friends.

Shikamaru, thankful for the distraction, ducks under Asuma's arm, which he had been waving around in the air for some unfathomable reason, and stands to Ino's right. "Ino, this is Asuma from across the hall," he explains, placing a hand on her back and nudging her forward to say hello.

She doesn't get a chance to say anything before Asuma opens his mouth a decides it's appropriate to ask—"So which one are you sleeping with?"

Ino stares at him wide-eyed, Shikamaru sighs, and Choji looks horrified. "I—umm—who are you sleeping with?" Ino fires back, stuttering slightly.

Asuma blinks slowly, then grins. "My wife."

"Oh," Ino says. "Well, it's nice to meet you."

* * *

**AN: Finished at midnightish, will edit tomorrow, ending might be bad. I hope you guys enjoyed chapter two!**

**Review guys! And feel free to send me situations that I can use for this story. Something serious, something ridiculous, it doesn't matter! I just need shenanigans. **

**-Riven**


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